Manchester United ended their season with a whimper. They were lacked any real inspiration as they lost 1-0 to Chelsea in the FA Cup final.

That loss means that the Red Devils ended the 2017-18 campaign without winning a trophy.

Now they were runners-up in both the Premier League and the FA Cup but that hasn’t been enough to convince some Man United fans that sufficient progress is being made under manager Jose Mourinho.

The club probably have to enter the transfer market quickly this summer to regain interest from their large fanbase.

Mourinho will also need to learn that his United squad play better without the shackles on. The Portuguese boss likes to be more pragmatic with his style and that doesn’t sit well at Old Trafford.

The players seem to struggle when their told to be cautious in their approach. The home support also feel very uneasy watching calculated defensive football.

United showed at times in the last campaign that they can be scintillating when going forward without any restrictions. Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial Romelu Lukaku and Co started the season with a bang and it looked like United would be more attacking throughout the campaign.

Then Jose’s instincts kicked in and it became too confused and negative.

The winter purchase of Alexis Sanchez was meant to be a morale boost, yet even the Chilean seems lost on the park not knowing whether to attack or stay in a constant state of being in defensive mode.

When you look at the squad, then ironically it’s the backline that needs to be strengthened the most.

Eric Bailly is probably the best centre-back at the club but injuries and an issue with Mourinho curtailed his appearances for the Red Devils.

Chris Smalling and Phil Jones still can’t offer enough consistency throughout a whole year. They both seem to suffer from confidence issues and make poor decisions/mistakes, Jones summed that up yesterday with his silly challenge on Eden Hazard that gave Chelsea their penalty at Wembley.

Marcos Rojo and Daley Blind had an injury plagued seasons and Victor Lindelof didn’t look at ease during his debut season in the Premier League.

So I’d guess a new centre-back might be required.

Matteo Darmian hasn’t managed to dislodge Antonio Valencia from his right-back spot and the Italian will no doubt head back to Serie A this summer. Jose will probably want to sign another right sided full-back to offer his captain sterner competition.

Ashley Young has been dependable in the left-back role but he’s a seasoned campaigner who isn’t getting any younger and has had his fair share of injury setbacks over the years too. Luke Shaw is clearly not fancied by Mourinho and it will be best for all concerned if the England international leaves this off-season.

Juventus’ man Alex Sandro has already been heavily linked with a move to Man Utd. While Celtic’s Kieran Tierney has also been talked about as being a transfer target for the English giants.

Speculation surrounding Juan Mata, Marouane Fellaini, Ander Herrera and Pogba have been rampant all year long. If a couple of them were to leave, then more midfield replacements will need to be found.

Martial is another footballer currently being continuously linked away from Old Trafford. If they were to sell the French forward than surely another goalscorer would need to be added to boost the attacking ranks.

I predict that Manchester United will once again be big spenders in this transfer window. They’ll need to bring in some big talent to re-energise their loyal support.

But Jose Mourinho and his board have to also realise that the standard of football has to improve too. Improvements need to be made and it has to happen fast to gain momentum or Jose will suffer during his third term in charge!

Posted on May 20th, 2018 by scott
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